NAV 2

March 25, 2015

wake up earlier

In an attempt to be more of a grown-up (I'm turning 26 here in a few days), I've been making the conscious effort to wake up earlier. No sarcasm when I say it's been grand.

Little bit about me: I'm currently in a love-hate relationship with sleep. Sleep & I have a very codependent, unhealthy kind of bond. Basically I think of sleep fondly when I don't have enough, & curse it when I have too much. If I could function properly on five or six hours of sleep a night, I totally would. Sleeping just takes up so much damn time.

Back to waking up early. Due to my reluctance to go to bed at a decent hour, I always sleep in. I push my alarm back so much that I have developed an extreme morning ritual which clocks in at under ten minutes. As in, if I have to leave for work by 6:45 to make it there on time, I'm waking up at 6:35. Period. There is no room for error with this method. In trying to be an adult, however, I've been giving myself an extra fifteen minutes in the morning. I'm not being dramatic when I say it has been life-changing.

If you're not a morning person, waking up earlier will turn you into one. Why was I so groggy in the morning before? Because I was trying to switch gears from sleepy-sleeptime to WIDE AWAKE LET'S GO too quickly.

Here are some of the pros to giving yourself a few extra moments in the morning:

You're less groggy: Yes, you'll still be groggy when you first awaken, but you can get that grouch-o attitude out of your system before you leave the house, not on your way to work (cue road rage).

You're less stressed: You won't have to worry about being late for work or school because you've given yourself an ample period to prepare. Relax, kiddo. You've got plenty of time.

You'll get better sleep: If you're waking up later, your body gets accustomed to a schedule that has you going to bed later. Waking up even a few minutes earlier will naturally transition your body into going to bed at a more decent hour.

Here's a tip though: don't force it. If your goal is to wake up an hour earlier, transition slowly. Start by waking fifteen minutes earlier for a few days. Then transition to a half an hour. Pushing up your waking time too quickly will only cause you to crash in the long run. Right now I'm waking up fifteen minutes earlier, but my plan is to push it back to about forty-five minutes.

You also want to wake up with a plan. Don't just wake up to be up. Give yourself something to look forward to in the morning. You could use that extra time to exercise, straighten your hair, or sit down with your coffee. Morning time is all about you.